Eyewitness
by princesa bonita
Summary: Elle left the B.A.U and is traveling in search for peace. When she arrives at her newest location, she is caught in the middle of an investigation as the only eyewitness. Elle is sucked into the life she left months ago. How will the team react?
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer:** _I do not own the characters, aside for the add ins. _

_This is based on Criminal minds. :)_

_Please enjoy! This is my first story for fanfiction. I am excited and nervous!_

_Review and tell me what you think!_

_*Ray-Ray_

* * *

In a small town in southern Illinois, Elle looks into the mirror of her temporary home.

_What have I become?_

She asks herself. She washed her hands for the hundredth time that day. Subconsciously she knew that she was only trying to wash away the memory, but the compulsion didn't lessen.

Every night she replayed the scenes in her dreams. It wasn't her fault; she was trying to protect herself and others. She had left the Behavioral analysis unit because she dreaded the work; she became sick at the sight of the blood and bodies.

_He wouldn't have left women alone. _She reasoned. Elle wasn't a killer though; she was a former B.A.U agent. She had been qualified to carry a gun. Again, no one had taken away those rights but she didn't feel worthy to carry a gun nor a badge. She remembered some of the things she had said to Hotch before leaving,

_The last time you sent me home Hotch, it got me shot. _Then that night, she killed the un-sub. She pushed Hotch away further when he was concerned with her well-being before going back to work. From there she left in the middle of an investigation. When the returned to headquarters she resigned; turning in her badge and gun.

_This is not a admit ion of guilt._

So here she was on the run, wishing that peace of mind would come soon. No matter what she did, the guilt took over.

She could recall several times that she had been tempted to contact Morgan, Gideon or Penelope; she always pushed the thoughts aside.

_I guess it is time to move on, _she concluded. She packed her one bag, and left the motel.

Elle drove for hours until she reached her new destination, Missouri.

"Hello ma'am." A truck driver said while she was inside a gas station. On instinct she created a quick profile. His clothing suggested that he was on the road a lot. Though he was muscular and had a grizzled face, he gave off a friendly disposition. But she couldn't out rule the possible dark side.

"Hello." She replied, not making eye contact.

"How are you today?" The man continued. Elle walked down the aisle grabbing water and a small bag of chips.

"I am fine." She replied curtly.

"You are a lovely woman. Why would you be out here on your own?"

Those words triggered her memory.

She stood in there waiting for him to arrive. _How could Hotch have let him walk? _She had thought. Then from the corner of her eye she saw him; the gangly man with shaggy hair, approach from the left. He had antagonized her, pushed her buttons until she broke.

Now she was feeling the same way, but she could do nothing but ignore the comments.

"Thank you, and I am meeting someone. I really must be going." She excused herself, paying for her items and left the gas station.

She arrived at her hotel fifteen minutes later. She ordered room service, and then relaxed in her room. Within minutes a loud knock sounded at her door. She opened it and was greet by a handsome man with a bottle of champagne for her.

"Thank you." Elle said giving the man a tip. He smiled sweetly, and Elle couldn't help but flirt.

"You're welcome ma'am." His green eyes sparkled.

Before Elle could speak a loud scream came from a room down the hall. Seconds later a man bounded through a door. His clothes were bloody; he ran through the hall. The employee placed himself in the way of the man.

When he made contact, the man shoved him hard. What the employee didn't know was that the escapee was carrying a knife in his right hand. He fell to the ground, blood gushing form his side.

The killer didn't give a second glance to Elle. She screamed and immediately fell to her knees in attempt to give any aid to the man. It was a futile attempt, he was already dead.

She was still trying to revive the man when the police arrived. They took her and held her as a witness. She didn't make any eye contact, and was silent when they asked her questions.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N:**

**The second chapter is done :) Yayy.**

**Tell me what you think,**

**I feel like the transition to the end is a little rough, but I tried to make it work.**

**I will have another update soon.**

**Introducing the rest of the team.**

* * *

Elle sat with her head in her hands as she waited for the permission to leave. She had been at the local station for over an hour.

"Ma'am, I am sorry to have kept you waiting." A young officer said.

"It is okay, I understand the importance of an eye witness." She said firmly. She stood and began to walk to the door. The man held it open for her and then proceeded to escort her out. "Are they going to be able to catch him?" She asked, mostly out of curiosity.

"With time, hopefully." He replied. Elle wanted more.

"What happened in the hotel?" She sounded innocent and curious, which was only partially true.

"Other than what you saw, I do not have the jurisdiction to share that information with you." The officer was good, Elle would give him that. It wasn't in Elle's personality to give up so easily.

"I am a witness, besides; I know how this cop stuff works. I used to be an agent myself. I specialized in sex crimes." The man looked at her dubiously. "I am serious!" She said a soft smile reaching the corner of her mouth.

"I still cannot give out any information to anyone who isn't involved in the case." He said firmly.

"A witness isn't involved in the case?" Elle countered. Now she was playing mind games on him.

"Technically no, a witness is only active in a case when being questioned. If any threat to that person's life is made, then they become involved in the case once more."

"You are confident that I won't be threatened?" She asked.

"Ma'am I can assure you that you will be safe. We have a team from the B.A.U. coming to investigate."

Elle's heart rate increased.

"Why would you need that B.A.U?" She asked. The man's eyes flickered. She had found the loop hole. He had given her information unintentionally. He hesitated before answering.

"This is not the first killing, other murders have similar aspects."

"So your department believes this is a serial killer?" She asked, the man didn't reply. He opened the front door of the building for her and let her out.

"We registered you into another hotel. Everything is paid for. I will drive you to the hotel to retrieve your car, and then escort your new location." Elle followed the man to his squad car and settled into the passenger seat.

She wondered what had happened in the hotel room. As they pulled into the parking lot next to her car she acted on impulse.

"I have my bags in my room still, can we go get them? I really need them." She pleaded. The officer contemplated the thought for a moment before agreeing.

They walked into the front doors and the officer showed his badge to the security guard at the front desk before proceeding.

"What room was it?" He asked.

"Four-fifteen, it's on the third floor." Elle said. They took the elevator to the third floor.

When they reached her room, the door was open and officers were searching it thoroughly.

"Stay out here," the officer instructed. Elle nodded.

As soon as he was out of sight, she moved farther down the hall to the room that was marked off by caution tape. Careful not to step in anything that may or may not be evidence, she ducked under the tape. Many objects were thrown across the room, clear signs of a struggle. A broken lamp lay on the floor to her right, and clothes were everywhere.

Elle walked further into the room and saw a young woman strapped to the bed. She had dark bruises all over her arms. Blood stained her face and fair hair; her eyes were wide open. Elle felt nauseous, this had been a rape. There were multiple stab wounds in the woman's abdomen.

Elle presumed that the man had killed her in a blind rage when she continued to fight. The thought was revolting, but she couldn't leave. She knew that there was something in here that would give her a clue as to who the killer was; what kind of man he is.

_This isn't your job anymore Elle. _She thought, slowly she turned from the scene and exited the room quickly. She managed to beat the officer back.

"I am sorry for the delay. The officers were searching the bag. But here it is." He handed her the bag.

"Thank you." She said smiling softly.

They left the hotel in silence. She then got into her car and followed him to her new place. It was a nice hotel, probably expensive.

"Well, this place is nice." She said as she walked up the front door.

"It is." The officer said. "I hope it will suffice." He smiled.

"It will," Elle replied.

"My name is Officer Liquet. Dorian Liquet," the man said holding out his hand.

Elle shook it firmly and thanked him once more for his help.

"Have a good day ma'am." He said before turning and leaving.

Elle walked up to her new room and settled on the couch.

_The B.A.U. is going to be here._ Elle thought, she wondered if they would send the team she had been with only months ago. She tried not to think about it; it was no longer her job or her business.

_It could become my business if I made it that way. _She thought to herself, but she wouldn't do that.

She fell asleep curled on the bed. Her dreams that night were better fitted as memories.

"_Next time, show a little leg." Agent Morgan commented after the arrest of their prime suspect of her first case with the team._

"_Morgan, the only time you are going to see a little leg from me is when I am about to kick your ass." He only laughed._

Then,

_Elle had been spending a fair amount of time trying to figure out why the 'Foot Path Killer' stuttered. Gideon's recollection of the encounter and how he survived was enticing. The team was then moved to work on a case in Tempe, Arizona._

_Even when she thought she had figured out why the un-sub stuttered; Gideon told her that she was wrong. That how he was, a puzzling man, but very knowledgeable. Elle admired him for that._

_Several other memories past her mind, including the vacation that the team took. Gideon stayed at a cabin he owned in the middle of nowhere._

"_Seriously, don't call." He had said before leaving. _

_Hotch spent his two weeks at home with his wife. Morgan and Elle had scored two rooms at a beautiful hotel on the beach in Jamaica. Reid chose to spend his time with his family, though he didn't seem too pleased with that. Elle did wonder what was going on, but pushed it aside._

_Garcia and Jay-Jay stayed behind. Jay-Jay kept things running at headquarters, and Garcia spent her time on her high-tech computer, playing fantasy games._

_Elle and Morgan left for their glorious vacation on the beach that night; little did they know that it would turn sour. After their first night, Elle was arrested. Blood had been smeared down the hall, leading straight to her hotel room door. It had been terrifying and disgusting._

Elle woke up to her phone ringing.

"Hello?" She answered.

"Elle," the caller said.

"Who is this?" Elle was puzzled, she didn't recognize the number.

"It's Penelope Garcia."

"Oh my god," she muttered. "Is it our team that is working this case?" Elle asked immediately.

"Yes," Garcia said softly. "The team is at the station now; they want you to meet them there for further questioning."

"Wonderful…" Elle said. She hung up the phone and prepared to leave the hotel room. She brushed her long dark hair and pulled it into a pony tail, leaving the room in a pair of blue jeans, a t-shirt, and a jacket.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N:**_ I wanted to tell you that I adore Derek Morgan. He is a beautiful man. Elle is going to be facing a decision here soon. _

_As always enjoy the story, and tell me what you think!_

_*Ray-Ray_

* * *

Elle pulled into the station.

_Wasn't I just here about four hours ago? _She asked herself. The sun was setting now and it was getting a little chilly. She wrapped her jacket tighter around herself. She stepped into the station.

"Can I help you my dear?" A middle aged woman said. She was holding a large box full of files. She wore a knee length skirt, a pink blouse, and wedge heals.

"Oh, I am Elle Greenaway; I was called in by an agent of the B.A.U." She replied. She took a hesitant step forward.

"They said a woman would be coming by. I will take you over to the conference room. I believe that is where they are setting up." Turned and began to walk down the hall. Elle followed silently behind the woman. "I think it is pretty amazing that the B.A.U. is here. The circumstances aren't all that great." The woman finished awkwardly. Elle only nodded, she remembered how the local law enforcement would gawk as the team strode into interrogation rooms and conference rooms.

"Elle Greenaway, is that you?" Elle turned to see Reid standing behind her. He still had the awkward posture and carried his satchel with him. Elle noticed that his hair had grown in the two months sense she had last seen him, but he was still Spencer Reid the genius.

"Hello Dr. Reid," she said.

"Why the formality" He asked, taking a couple steps toward her. Elle smiled softly.

"It's good to see you again Reid." She remembered how she had confided in him she had been shot by the un-sub; she then got her revenge later when she confronted the man, and killed him. He had reached out to her, visiting her hotel room to check on her.

"It is the same here." He walked forward and continued. "The team is in here, come one." He then took the lead and walked forward. "When the locals said you were the witness, I couldn't believe it. The team was shocked, but we still figured that you would end up in the field again. What are you doing now-a-days?" Reid was speaking a mile a minute. Elle was having difficulty keeping up.

"I didn't intend to be involved in crime solving again actually. It was completely a matter of being in the wrong place at the wrong time. Right now, I am still trying to get a hold of myself." Elle said truthfully. "How is the rest of the team holding up?"

"Things aren't getting any easier, but we are holding up pretty well. Gideon left." Spencer said quietly.

Elle was shocked. Gideon had always been about keeping as many serial killers off the streets as possible, why had he quite?

"When did he leave? Why did he leave?" Elle asked

"He left a shot while after you did. I think all of the loses were getting to him. He felt self-hatred for the times he had failed. I think that was piling up in his mind. In the end, it was too much for him. He was stressed when he first rejoined the team." Reid said as they entered the conference room.

Hotch was standing in front of a large group of officers, with Morgan by his side. Hotch looked exactly as he did months ago; his face was shaved and his hair cut to the same length. Derek Morgan looked the same as well, with his dark skin and smiling eyes. But lack of sleep was beginning to show on their faces.

A dark haired woman that Elle didn't recognize was standing in the back of the room. As she and Reid stepped into the room, the conversation stopped.

"Ms. Greenaway, Agent Prentiss will take you to the interrogation rooms for now." Hotch said.

"Wonderful… two times in one day," she muttered. The dark haired woman stepped forward and led Elle away.

"I am Emily Prentiss." She said politely.

"I am aware of that." Elle said hotly. Truthfully she had no reason to show disdain towards anyone on the team, but she continued to do so. "I'm Elle."

Prentiss then left her in the interrogation room where she sat for another half hour.

*Meanwhile, in the conference room*

"This un-sub has a temper, and a short one. If anyone does something to ignite a flame, he will blow. His latest victim, a young woman only twenty years old, seemed to have been killed due to a sudden outburst of rage. If the un-sub feels that his authority is being threatened he will act upon that. He will harm anyone who gets in the way of what he wants. We believe that he is a white male from the ages of twenty-five to thirty. He may be severely bipolar. We believe that he grew up in a home where his mother may have been beaten when his father didn't have power. Therefore, if he tried to protect himself or his mother; he would be beaten.

"This leads us to our next move. We want to try and provoke him to act on impulse, force him out of his comfort zone. "Hotch was keeping eye contact with everyone in the room. He tried not to let Elle's presence throw him off his game.

"We will start with a press conference; one of our agents will be preparing that once we have finished this briefing." He turned to the rest of the team. He noticed that Prentiss had reentered to room.

"Do you have anything to add?" He asked.

"If our un-sub does have bipolar disorder, his moods will change erratically. This could mean a number of things. He may only rape his next victim. As Hotch said before, any one small thing could turn the tables completely. It would not be surprising if he left a letter of remorse, or one of his trophies at one of the scenes. This also leads to the possibility of him returning to the crime scene to relive the moment, or mourn." Morgan added.

"Considering we have not discovered any trophy that he has taken from the victims _physically_, he may be keeping pictures or videos." Reid suggested.

"Now we will have some of you patrolling the crime scenes, that way if he does return we will be ready." Hotch dismissed the officers and called the team to a small meeting. Rossi and Jay-Jay joined the others.

"Now we know that our one witness is probably the best that we could ask for. However, we cannot let that get too far ahead of us. She knows about profiling and this kind of crime. She was a part of the team. Now Morgan, you will speak with Elle now." Morgan looked stunned.

"Elle, as in Elle Greenaway," he asked. Hotch nodded.

"But you must not speak to her casually, treat he as you would any other witness or suspect." Hotch said. He didn't want to give her a hard time. But at the same time, he knew that he couldn't let her off easy. She was no different than any other witness.

"Hotch; I think it would be better if I interviewed her." Reid spoke up. Morgan looked up at his co-worker.

"You got some unsettled business?" Morgan joked. Reid looked at him confused. "There is no use joking with you Reid," Morgan laughed; patting Reid hard on the back, who winced.

"Why do you say that Reid," Rossi asked.

"I think she will be more comfortable with me. I believe she will be more open with me because of…" Reid trailed off; he had not told anyone else about how she was affected after she had been attacked. He helped her feel calmer, but he could tell that she was still on edge.

"Well, I still think we should let Morgan begin with the interrogation, because her comfort isn't necessarily what we want. She may be our friend, but what we want from her is a recollection of what she saw."

Reid nodded in understanding. Morgan grabbed Reid's shoulder before walking into the interrogation room. Reid and Hotch stood on the other side of the glass and watched. Jay-Jay and Rossi went to set up a press conference.

"Hello," Morgan said as he sat down. Elle nodded. She looked bored. Morgan slid a glass of water in her direction; she took a sip of with without her gaze leaving Derek. "So, as I understand it, you witnessed a murder, and have a glimpse of our un-sub." He said. He was calm, but on the inside his head was spinning.

"Yes, I did." Elle replied simply. "I suppose you want me to retell my encounter.

"Yes, if you would." Derek said. He leaned forward. "Don't leave out any details Elle."

Elle shot into her meeting with the killer. She explained every detail, including her arrival. She described everything perfectly, elaborating on the physical details of the staff member who had been killed, and how she attempted to save his life. She moved on the police's questions and her relocation. She did mention her visit to the crime scene.

"God, Elle" Morgan mumbled. He put his hand over his brow and sighed heavily.

"What? I was curious; I had to know what happened. Once I saw the woman, I was disgusted. You know these are the cases that really irk me. But what disturbed me the most was the way he didn't even glance over at me. He ran on as if I wasn't there. I wondered if I wasn't important enough for him to bother, or he didn't see me. Either way, it was his own mistake; it could lead to his capture."

Morgan only shook his head.

"What?" Elle demanded; she was becoming irritated.

"It is just like you to sneak onto a crime scene." Morgan whispered. "If you still want to do the work, why leave?" He asked.

"It was tearing my life apart from the seams. I was unstable." She looked to her glass and spun it around in her hand a few times.

"Yes," he replied. "If you can come up with a description of the un-sub; it would be most helpful."

"Yeah," Elle said. She understood how this kind of thing worked, so why was Morgan going about the normal routine. The logical part of her mind was able to answer that question. Hotch had probably said something to the team. They were going to treat her like another witness.

"Come with me, and we will talk to a sketch artist." Morgan stood and opened the door for her. She walked out of the room and was immediately escorted by an officer and Derek down to another room.

Elle spent the next hour with the sketch artist. She was becoming very irritable. She wanted to sleep. But mostly, she wanted to be away from this environment. She couldn't admit to herself that it felt good to be near the danger and excitement. She didn't want to get back into that profession again.

"Am I able to leave yet?" Elle asked in a dry tone. An older man walked up to Elle just then.

"Hello, my name is Agent David Rossi. I heard that you are a former agent. You happened to work with most of the team here. I don't want to take up too much of your time so I will be brief. If you have any interest in helping us with the case I would much appreciate it. I am sure the team feels the same. I was told that you did specialize in sex crimes. This would be a great opportunity for you get back into the field."

Elle smiled politely. She was tempted by the offer.

"Thanks, but I think I will have to take a rain check on that one." Rossi nodded. Elle was able to feel the team's gaze upon her.

"If you change your mind, please call." Rossi turned to the team, "let's get to work."

Elle turned and walked out to her car. Now it was dark outside. Elle reached her car and drove to the hotel. Once inside her room she climbed into her bed. She finally was able to sleep. It was the first peaceful sleep she had had in a long time.


	4. Chapter 4

Elle woke up refreshed. She showered and thought seriously about Agent Rossi's offer. The team may need her help. She did want to be back on the field and technically she was still qualified. She knew it would be a mistake not to take the offer, but she felt like if she did she would be putting herself back in the same position. She didn't want to deal with that stress again.

_It was your own fault, _she reasoned. _You separated yourself from the rest of the team. Reid did try to talk to you._

Finally she caved in.

"Hello, Garcia speaking, I am here to make your wildest dreams come true." Elle almost laughed.

"Hello Garcia, can you tell the team I am on board. It's Elle, Elle Greenaway."

"Elle!" Penelope shouted. "Oh, everyone is going to be so excited. I… I will tell them right away, bye!"

The call ended. Then moments later she received a message with an address. Elle left the hotel, and using the GPS in her phone, she found her way out to the team. She spotted Reid who waved her over. Elle jogged towards him.

"Hey Elle," He smiled. Morgan turned and saw her. He simply nodded.

"Hello Reid. Hey Morgan, where is everyone else?" Elle kept pace with Morgan and Reid as they led the way.

"Jay-Jay and Rossi are in the middle of the press conference right now. Agent Prentiss is just up ahead speaking with one of the members of the staff at the hotel." Reid said. He seemed to be really chatty, which was a little out of character.

"I see." She said in reply. "How have things been with Gideon gone?" Reid shrugged before answering.

"It is defiantly different. I had no doubt that Rossi could do the job, but Morgan and the others were worried about his performance. He had been retired for some years, you know." Reid stuck his hands in his pockets and continued on.

"What about Agent Prentiss?" Elle pried.

"She is a good agent; she fits in well with the team. Though there are some things that she keeps from us. But we all do that don't we." Reid gave her a meaningful look. Elle said nothing in return.

Agent Prentiss was finishing up with an employee. She was shaking hands with the woman.

"Thank you for your time ma'am." She said smiling. The woman nodded and hurried off back into her home. "Hello Elle, she said.

"Hello," Elle replied nodding her head. "What do we know about our un-sub?"

"Well, the manager checked the records, he paid in cash. They were able to give the same description as you did. They don't recall him bringing a girl with him when he checked in. We are going to look at the security cameras back at the hotel now. Would you like to join me? Or would you rather go with Prentiss and Reid to meet up with some more employees?" Morgan said.

"I would like to look at the videos." Elle said crossing her arms.

The others nodded, and then separated. Morgan and Elle drove to the Hotel once more.

"What made you move here?" Morgan asked as they walked toward the entrance.

"Well, I am still trying to find that peaceful place. Nowhere is good enough." Elle confessed. Morgan only nodded and held the door for her.

Inside the hotel they waited at the front desk for assistance. Within a few moments a middle aged woman came and settled at the desk in front of them.

"Hello, how may I help you two?" She said smiling. Morgan pulled out his badge and showed it to the woman.

"I am agent Derek Morgan and this is Elle Greenaway, we are her from the BAU, we wish to look over your security tapes, and registration files." The woman nodded and frantically began looking around. She lifted the divider and allowed them to step in behind the desk.

"All the registration files are here on this computer. Is there any room you are looking for in particular?" She said while accessing the records.

"Yes, the crime scene." Morgan said simply. Elle looked at the woman. Her hair was pulled into a tight bun. She tapped her fingers impatiently on the keyboard as the files loaded.

"Ah, here we go. Room Four-twenty," she turned the computer screen so Elle and Morgan could see it. "Well, ring the bell if you need anything else." She said smiling, and then she walked off into the office area.

"Well our un-sub paid in cash, it looks like." Morgan took out his phone and dialed a number. "Hey, sweet cakes, can you give me anything on the name, Hans Joachim?" He smiled. Elle figured that Garcia was flirting in the way she does. "Thanks anyway." Then he hung up the phone. "The name was phony." He said turning to Elle.

"Typical," Elle said. She rang the bell for the attendant to return. The next minute she was in the room once more.

"Did you find what you were looking for?" She asked.

"Not yet, we need to look at your security tapes." Elle said firmly. The woman turned around and walked into the office once more.

"One second let me get our head of security." She said before she closed the door.

She returned minutes later with an older man. He was a larger man with greying hair.

"How may I help ya'll?" He said in a thick southern accent.

"They are from the BAU Dan; they need to look at the security tapes." The woman answered. She settled at her desk once more.

"Well, come on to the office." He said. Elle and Morgan followed him into the large office. There were several monitors sitting on a long table. There was one that was off; next to it were several tapes.

"Which tapes are you interested in?" The man said

"Well, our un-sub checked in to this hotel a week ago." Morgan said.

"Videos from the sixth then," the man said rummaging through a large box on the ground. "Here are the tapes from the sixth all the way until yesterday." The man said handing then several tapes.

"Thank you. We will be taking these as evidence." Morgan said and turned to leave.

"Thank you." Elle said. She followed Morgan out of the room.

Elle followed Morgan back to the station. They waited for Reid and Prentiss to join them. Then they began to watch the tapes together. They began early in the morning.

"He doesn't clock in until later in the afternoon, go ahead and fast forward." Morgan said.

For some time they reviewed the videos on the special computer. Elle spotted the man as he checked into the hotel.

"Him," she said softly pointing to a tall man wearing a dark coat.

They cut out the footage of the man, separating it from everything else. The man had arrived alone, and he was careful not to show his face in the cameras. He came and went as he please always returning alone. On the third night however, he returned with a young woman, the victim. She leaned on him drunkenly.

"There is our victim." Morgan said, pausing the tape. "Do we have an ID on her yet?"

"Garcia sent us the name; Dahlia Cadent. She was local; some of her family still lives in the area. Her sister lives with her mother just outside of town. They have already been called in." Agent Prentiss said.

Morgan nodded and started the tapes once more. They watched carefully, the man later left alone once more, and returned with a large bag. He was still concealing his face from the cameras.

"He is being very careful." Prentiss said. Reid nodded, his eyes squinted.

"Look at his right hand." Reid said. Everyone directed their eyes toward the man's hand.

"What are we looking at?" Elle asked. Reid took control of the computer and rewound the tape slightly. Then he had the tape move forward slowly. The man constantly tapped his hand in a rhythmic fashion.

"What is that supposed to mean Reid?" Morgan asked.

"Do you remember the case in Arizona?" He asked.

"Yes, you think it is something similar." Elle said. Reid nodded. Prentiss look a little confused.

"If it is the same thing, where is the pattern in the killings?" Morgan said. "It could just be some form of OCD or OCP."

_Anything is possible. _Elle thought.

"We can't rule anything out." She said finally.


	5. Chapter 5

**_Author's Note: _**_This chapter is finished. So here is a quick heads up: Elle is questioning a foriegn woman, so I did my best with the spanish. I am mexican, but a sad one. I took what I know from my class and then made up for what I didnt with a translator. I used parenthesis to show the translation, but she does repeat eveything back into english. _

_Annnnyway, I hope you enjoy it. Sorry the update is kind of slow. _

_For those of you readers that have been keeping up with the show, OMG. Prentiss! _

_ENJOY_

* * *

They continued reviewing the security tapes for what seemed like hours. When Agent Rossi and Hotch joined them, they all swapped the evidence they had gathered.

"The fact that he isn't killing in a set place, leads me to believe that he is unfamiliar with the area, and is testing out his comfort zone." Elle said; she earned thoughtful looks from the crew. Inwardly, she was pleased.

"He also seems to be a newer killer, meaning little experience." Agent Prentiss added. "This would add to finding his comfort zone." Reid nodded thoughtfully. He was still watching the tapes in slow mo.

Hotch's phone rang; he walked out of the room to answer it.

"Boss?" It was Penelope.

"Yes, Garcia?" He replied. "What is it?"

"The department just received a phone call. Another woman went missing. The family says that she was on a business trip. She was staying in one of the local hotels."

"Can you send us everything you have on her? Suggest that the parents come into the station."

"Her parents are just out of state sir," Garcia said.

"Nevertheless, call them in." He said firmly.

"Of course, I will send you the information about the girl right away."

"Thanks Garcia." Hotch walked back into the room.

"Yep," Then she disconnected the call.

"Garcia says that there is another potential victim. She was taken from a hotel. She is sending us the information now." In that instant each of their phones rang, aside from Elle's. She looked over Reid's shoulder and read everything Penelope had sent.

"You know, that is very unnerving." Reid said. He handed Elle his phone and let her look on her own. She smiled.

The girl was in her early twenties, another blonde. Her name was Kendra She had a very good job, she worked for the local cancer center, she was just returning from a conference in San Francisco. Her parents lived in a small town in Kansas.

"Do we know if Penelope was able to get her parents to come in?" Reid asked.

"She is working on that right now." Hotch answered.

"This girl is very smart. I don't think she would willingly go with our un-sub. She had to have been taken by surprise." Elle said thoughtfully. "I also believe he won't stay at the hotels."

"Why do you think that?" Rossi asked.

"Well, he runs the risk of getting caught in a hotel. He left one witness, me, the first time. He will want to lessen the risk by moving to a new more solitary location." She sat in a chair in the corner of the room.

"That makes sense." Morgan said. He was still skimming the information. "She isn't married. We need to find some sort of connection between the victim and Kendra."

"We have everything from our last victim in the conference room at the station. Reid, you will go back and compare the two of them." Hotch said. "Prentiss, I want you to scope out the hotel with Morgan. Elle, would you mind coming with me?"

Elle looked at Hotch, meeting his eyes for the first time. She nodded, and from there they split into groups. Reid was on his way back to the station, he already had Penelope on the phone. Morgan and Agent Prentiss were on their way to the second sight.

"Elle, I must say it is good to see you." Elle knew that from his tone there was more than that.

"Same," she said, watching Hotch from the corner of her eye.

"I still don't completely understand why you left. You had so much going for you. Are you even working with any form of the government right now?" He asked bluntly.

"I told you _why_ I felt the day I turned in my gun and badge." She sighed. "I am kind of between jobs right now." She knew how generic the excuse sounded, but she didn't bother making a better one.

"Yes, but truly Elle, it isn't like you to give up on something you are so passionate about."

Elle wasn't in the mood for this conversation, at least not with Hotch.

"I have my reasons, let's leave it at that." She turned away. "Where are we going anyway?"

"Well, I thought we would go to the old crime scene." Hotch said. Elle nodded. "To try and see if we can gain any further information."

"Then let's go." She followed Hotch out to his car and they made their way to the hotel silently.

"Morgan and I got a chance to talk to the woman at the front desk and the head of security." Hotch nodded, listening. "I think we need to talk to some of the other staff, then with the first victim's family. How many other victims are there?"

"Well as far as we know, three. That sounds like a decent plan. Reid will be looking at all the victims, including our newest."

"If anyone can find a connection between the killings, it's Reid." Elle said laughing.

They had almost no luck back at the hotel. They did have one new piece of information; it came from one of the cleaning ladies. She spoke little English, so Elle spoke with the woman. Then she would translate for Hotch. Though she was sure he understood some of the language.

"Buenos días señora; tenemos algunos preguntas para preguntarte." Elle said (Good day/morning Mrs., we have some questions to ask you).

"Sí." (Yes)The woman stopped what she was doing and looked from Elle to Hotch.

"¿Tu Limpiaste el cuarto que la mujer fue encontrada en?" Elle asked (Did you clean the room that the dead woman was found in?). Fear flashed in the woman's eyes.

"No, porque me dijo a salir." The woman spoke in a soft voice. "Yo hice que él dijo."

"No because he told me to leave. I did what he said." Elle said to Hotch, and then to the woman she asked another question. "¿Agarró otra cosa su atención?" Elle asked (Did anything else get your attention).

"Un noche el devolvió a una mujer." The woman said. She eyed Hotch nervously. "La mujer era muy bonita, Ella pareció borracha." (One night, he brought a woman. The woman was very beautiful, she seemed drunk.)

"Gracias," Then Elle turned to Hotch. "She said that the man told her to leave, so she did. Then nothing else happened until one night he brought a woman back to the hotel with him. She was beautiful, and she seemed drunk. That would explain how he got her back to the hotel. No doubt he spiked whatever she drank that night." Hotch nodded.

"Ask her if she heard anything later that night." From his tone, Elle could tell that he was impressed.

"¿Oíste algo del cuarto después de que eso?" Elle asked.

"Sí, Gritaban mucho. De repente fue silencioso." (Yes, they shouted a lot. Then suddenly it was silent.)

"Gracias, puedas ir ahora." The woman nodded and returned to her work, hurrying away from them.

"She said that they screamed a lot, but suddenly it got quiet." Elle looked to Hotch for his opinion.

"Why didn't she go to look or call for help?" Hotch asked.

They began to walk to the elevator towards the crime scene. The waited until they could go to an elevator that was vacant.

"She probably didn't think it was any of her business. If it was just a couple having wild sex, she would be punished. Most likely she is here without a green card. Did you see the way that she looked at you? She had no problem talking to me, but you made her uneasy." Hotch pondered over this, then nodded accepting the reasoning.

"Well, let's see if our crime scene will give us more clues to the story."

Then they walked back onto the scene. Elle had already seen it. But now when things were quiet, everything in the room seemed to speak to her. He would almost picture the scene in her head.

"If she was drugged, then he had already raped her before any of the struggle occurred." Hotch said, walking around the room. "She didn't struggle with him until the drugs wore off."

"Why didn't he get rid of her before then?" Elle asked. "Something must have prevented him from dropping her off somewhere."

"Maybe the drug didn't last as long as he had hoped." Elle furrowed her brow. It was possible, but it wasn't likely.

"I don't think that it was that. He wouldn't risk keeping her that long. After he did what he did, he would dump her. It was all a part of the routine, he _needs _to follow it. If he doesn't, he believes everything will fall apart." Ell looked in the bathroom. It was neat. Everything was set in a certain order. Elle called Hotch over. He took out his phone and took several pictures, and then he sent them to Reid.

"What changed?" Hotch said as they left the room and headed back to the local station.

The question still hung in the air as they arrived.

"Boss, all of the victims are blonde and in their twenties. He could be using them to relive some part of his life, maybe a past girlfriend or his mother. It was the only connection I could find between all of them.

"Thank you Spencer. Have Prentiss and Morgan returned?" Hotch asked.

"Not yet. I wanted to review the videos again; I think there was something that we missed."

"I agree." Elle said firmly. "Did you get the pictures that Hotch sent?"

"I did, that is why I wanted to look at the tapes again. If he has OCD it would be clear in the way he acted around everyone." Reid and Elle walked back to a room she had not seen yet.

"The locals are allowing us to use this room for the tapes." He sat in the chair at the desk and popped found the files of they had created for the case.

**With Hotch:**

"Hey Morgan," he said.

"Hey Hotch; Prentiss is finishing up with one of the staff members. Apparently our girl had her own dark side. She had been a part of an affair with a man named Jack Henson. She had been on a business trip, but it was only supposed to last over the weekend. She had been checked into the hotel for almost a week."

"Well, have we found the man?" Hotch asked.

"No, but he is still checked into the hotel. When he arrives we will bring him in." Morgan hung up.

Hotch sat in the large conference room and gazed from the different photos of the victims. None of the clues made complete sense. There were partial prints on the victims but none of them had been enough to make a match. Though the killings seemed erratic and occurred in a fluster, there hadn't been anything that gave him away. They needed to provoke him, but they didn't even know if there was any place that he would be on a regular occasion. They still didn't know enough about him.


	6. Chapter 6

**Author's Note: **_I finished this chapter, finally. I know it has been awhile but I have been so busy with school and such. We still don't learn to much about the un-sub, but we are getting there... hopefully. enjoy, and share your thoughts. Thanks!_

* * *

"Hotch; Reed thinks he found something in the video that we overlooked." El said walking around the corner. Morgan and Prentice strode through the doors.

"We didn't find too much more, but what we did find was interesting." Derek said. He set down his phone and keys and walked over to the board.

"What would that be?" Hotch asked expectantly.

Morgan pointed to each of the women.

"They all had the same therapist. We haven't been able to get a hold of the doctor himself, but we were able to make an appointment with him tomorrow afternoon. I think we should interrogate his whole office building." He sat down and looked from Hotch, El, and Prentiss.

"Has Penelope run a background check on the therapist?" Hotch asked.

"We called her as soon as we discovered it." Prentiss confirmed. "Where is Reed?"

El took the opportunity to speak.

"He is still reviewing the tapes; he actually had something that may help us. Come on in." They followed El to where Reed was looking at the several screens in front of him. Each was paused showing the image was the same.

"Whatcha got Reed?" Morgan said sliding into a second rolling chair.

"The front desk receives calls daily, from reservations to current customers. There were several calls at the same time over several days. Each time the desk clerk called back to the office."

"We can't be sure that our un-sub was the caller." Morgan said skeptically.

"It doesn't hurt to ask either way." El said.

"She's right." Hotch said. "Do the two of you want to go back to the hotel now and see?" El nodded and Morgan shrugged. "Call me with results."

Morgan drove back to the hotel once more and the made there way back to the front door.

"What happened to you after you left the BAU?" He asked. El sighed. She knew that eventually more questions would arise.

"Nothing interesting, I traveled for the most part. I didn't want to be followed. I just wanted to stay away from all the crime." Morgan gave her a dubious look.

"You of all people should understand that there is no escape. Remember our 'vacation'?" He said with a raw chuckle. El rolled her eyes. "Did you find what you were searching for in yourself?" Morgan said.

"I don't know." She said shutting down; she didn't want to answer any more questions.

"You were a great agent El. I think the BAU would be grateful to have you back. It is obvious that you still are passionate for the work. If you weren't you wouldn't be involved in this any further than the questioning." Derek's prodding was beginning to irritate El; she didn't want his concern or advice.

"Morgan, I am not the same person you knew. You didn't really know me then either. Let's just work on the case at hand instead of trying to get into my mind."

"Ouch El, that stung." He said it in a light playful tone; but El knew that he had been somewhat offended by her remark. She wanted it that way. She didn't need to get reattached the team.

"Hello, how may I help you?" A woman at the front desk said. She was thin and short; she had a bright smile and big eyes. From her stature, El gathered that she was a very socially confident woman, most likely a gossiper.

"Yes," Morgan said leaning on the counter. He was smiling sweetly. "I am from the BAU,"

"Oh my gosh, are you the guys who came in here earlier asking about the dead girl?" Her voice was shrill with a mixture of excitement and fear. El sighed.

"Yes, we have some questions concerning calls made to the front desk each night at seven."

"Well you will want to talk to my manager than, I only work during the day, I don't know who has the night shift. I will be right back." She smiled politely as she walked out.

"Back so soon?" The manager said. "What do you need this time?"

"We have a question about calls made at seven each night, who is at the front desk in the evenings?" El asked politely.

"Well I can show you the records of the calls and the bill from the room if you can give me the number." Morgan gave the room number to the manager and they waited.

The woman returned with a sheet of paper in her hand. She bounced to Derek before stopping.

"This is the bill for the room you asked about." She handed El the paper. "I have to get back to work now. The phone is ringing," she smiled.

"It looks like our un-sub called for room service every night at the same time." Derek shook his head. "How does Reed know?" He asked dumbfounded. El laughed and rang the bell at the front desk.

"Oh," The young woman said. "Do you need something else?" She looked to Derek, who was on the phone with Penelope.

"Thanks baby girl." He shut the phone. The girl looked away obviously feeling foolish. El suppressed a chuckle.

"Yes," El said. "We need to know who brought up room service to room 418." The manager said, walking back inside the office and returned with several papers with information.

"There are three employees who work that floor. This has everything that you will need to contact them or find them. Will that be all? I believe you are making some of the costumers nervous." The manager looked around at costumers lounging in the lobby.

"Thank you." El said briskly and walked toward the rotating doors.

The car ride back to the station was silent. El liked it that way, but it was clearly unnerving to Derek because he fidgeted around and turned the radio on. El looked through the papers and dialed the number Penelope had given her earlier.

"Goddess of… well whatever you can imagine, speaking. How may I help you?" She said in her cheerful tone.

"Hey, Garcia. I have some names for you." El read off the names and waited for Penelope to respond.

"Despite the horrible name Hubert was given, his record is clean. There isn't anything that would suggest domestic violence or rape. As for the other two, they have minor charges from juvenile records. But nothing serious, I don't think any of these guys would have been involved in this."

"I'm not necessarily looking for involvement. I want to know if these any of the employees would keep their mouths shut if they saw the crime. Thanks P." She closed the phone. With a sigh she said, "How have you been Morgan?" Derek was caught off guard, but answered nonetheless.

"Fine, the work is always hard. But it is worth it." He kept the answer short and to the point, something El liked.

They walked into the station and met up with Reed.

"Penelope says you have suspects for us?" He said pulling his hair behind his ear.

"Yes, we have three." Morgan said. "Where is Hotch?" He asked as he continued walking into the conference room. Jay-Jay was working on paperwork for something, and Prentiss was staring at the whiteboard, contemplating the evidence.

"What do you have for me?" Hotch said from behind them. They spun around and handed Hotch the papers.

"Prentiss and El, go find Jared Dantoni. Reed and Morgan I want you to take Hubert. Rossi and I will take the third suspect." He grabbed his badge and holster then left the room followed by the others.


	7. Chapter 7

**Author's note: **_Greetings! I have completed another chapter. It was a fairly quick update, I think. Anyway, I hope you enjoy it. Review! and as always thank you! _

_~Ray-Ray_

* * *

Prentiss and El arrived at the suspect's home in about fifteen minutes.

"Do you think he would have any reason to run?" El asked as she opened the car door.

"Not if he is innocent." She said simply, shrugging her shoulders. They walked to the front door casually and El knocked firmly.

"Mr. Dantoni, open up." She said. Prentiss finished with.

"FBI, we have some questions for you." They waited for a moment and as Prentiss was ready to kick the door in they heard a loud thud and the clanging of a fence. To their right a scrawny man wearing ill fitted jeans had attempted to leap over the fence into the neighbor's yard.

"He must be guilty… of something." El said as she ran towards the gate. Prentiss kept at her side the whole way. They leapt over the fence at the same time and surrounded the man, who had made no attempt to stand.

"I didn't do it I swear!" He screamed covering his face.

"Mr. Dantoni, we want to ask you some questions. Come with us." Prentiss said pulling the man up by his arm. He stood, but staggered slightly.

"He smells like cocaine." El said as she scrunched her nose. The smell was repulsive. "God, how much did you smoke?" The man laughed, though El was sure he didn't understand a word she had said.

"We will have to wait until his high is over." Prentiss said as they walked him to the car. She shoved him in the back seat, his hands cuffed behind his back. She locked the door and turned to El.

"He is disgusting." His smell still lingered in the air. "I suggest we call the police. They can search his house, for the drugs."

"But we may lose the only evidence we might have. I think we should do a quick search. Then call the police. I think his condition is enough reason to obtain a warrant." It was clear that Prentiss was still unsure about the action but she agreed either way. She sent a message to Hotch and followed El inside. Despite the man's manner, the house was perfectly clean. The stench of cocaine did hang in the air, but it was only in the kitchen.

They walked into the other rooms of the house and found his phone and a laptop. Other than that there wasn't much to take. They placed the objects into a bad and walked back to the car. Jared Dantoni had passed out in the back seat.

"Figures," El muttered. "Next he is going to piss himself." She rolled her eyes and Prentiss laughed.

"Hotch tells me you were a good agent." She said lightly. She must have known it would be a ruff subject because she didn't press any further when El didn't respond.

"Do you think he saw anything?" El asked.

"Maybe, if he wasn't as high as a kite on his shift." Prentiss sighed. El nodded. "I hope this gets us somewhere in the case, I hate it when we can find a breakthrough." El understood completely. She laughed softly to herself.

They pulled up to the station and met Morgan and Reed outside. Morgan glanced back at the man.

"I am guessing he ran," he said chuckling. "Oh I wish I could have been there, watching the two of you run would have been priceless." He winked jokingly. Prentiss ignored him, and El gawked.

"You really haven't changed." She said with laughter.

"You still haven't shown enough leg I see." He laughed walked over to the car to pull the suspect out.

"Woo," he said wiping his hand across his face. "Man you must have had some trip earlier." He laughed bitterly. Then he muttered, "Disgusting."

Derek shoved the man, none too gently into the interrogation room.

"Hey man, watch it." He said straightening up." He sat into the chair and placed his head against the table. "I am hungry, do you have any food?"

"Munchies," Derek muttered to Reed. He smiled wryly and shut the interrogation room door.

"Are we going to give him any food?" Reed asked. Morgan shrugged. He seemed unconcerned.

"I am guessing that your suspect talked to you calmly." Prentiss said to Reed.

"Yes, he didn't take anything up to our un-sub's room all week. I suspect Hotch will be back with more news. For now that leaves us with Mr. Dantoni." Spencer said.

Derek reentered the room and spoke.

"Rossi called. It looks like we have a girl in the hospital; she overpowered a man who was trying to rape her. She ran a few miles until she collapsed. She fits the profile we made for the victims." He jingled his car keys. "I am going to take this one." He said before leaving the room once more.

**Hotch**

They had pulled up to the home of the third suspect. Rossi nocked on the door and called inside. There was no answer. Rossi shrugged. He tried the knob and saw that it was unlocked.

"This is either a bad sign, or the man is careless." Hotch said. He gave the door a small kick and it opened the rest of the way. They walked throughout the house searching for their suspect.

"Clear," Hotch shouted. After a long moment he heard Rossi call out the word as well.

"Hotch. Call the police, he is dead." Hotch set down his gun; replacing it in his holster.

"How long," he asked. Rossi looked and the man and shrugged.

"A few hours at best," he pulled out his cell and called Morgan once more. "Hey, our suspect is dead." He listened briefly. "Ask her when she comes around. We will speak more at the station. Call the others and tell them."

Hotch had his phone out and was taking a picture of the scene.

"I am going to send this to Reed, and I will send a photo of our victim to Garcia." He then called 911. Once the police arrived they spoke with the chief officer and handed the case over.

"You are sure that this isn't the work of your killer?" He asked concerned. Hotch nodded.

"Nothing in his behavior suggests that he would mess with someone who had little to do with him. The MO's are completely different anyway. I highly doubt that he would go out of his way to kill a witness. One of our agents say the man, she hasn't reencountered him."

The man nodded, more confident now. But not all the weight was lifted off his shoulders. He still had a murder to solve.

"If anything more happens call us. We will help where we can." He gave the man his card and then returned to his car.

They made their way back to the station once more. Hotch was growing increasingly tired. He needed another coffee; though he knew that the true remedy was a good night's sleep. He also knew that that would be unlikely to happen until the case was over.

"Penelope has background on our vic." Prentiss said. "He didn't have and previous record. But that doesn't mean anything. He just could have been one of the lucky ones, who never got caught. It's rare, but it can happen."

"We have his cell and his laptop, Reed; we want you to look at those." Rossi handed Reed the bag and walked over to the white board to examine the evidence they had. There still wasn't very much.

"Is Morgan still at the hospital?" He asked not looking away from the victims.

"Yes, he is." El said. "Our suspect was beyond high when we met up with him. He is sitting in the interrogation room with a bad case of the munchies." She smiled thinking of Morgan's humor.

"I will speak with him." David said. Hotch turned to El.

"Let's go to the hospital with Morgan." He said firmly. El followed silently bidding farewell to Reed and Prentiss with a nod.

In moments the arrived at the hospital, everything in this town was so close together, El wasn't sure if she liked that or not. They walked into the hospital, and were directed to the third floor.

"She is stable," the doctor was saying to Agent Morgan. He spotted Hotch and El, and called them over.

"She was awake for about five minutes; I didn't bother trying to waste her energy. She suffers from the same wounds we find on our victims, the MO is the same, but she wasn't drugged on anything."

That was new, El made a mental note.

"Maybe he couldn't get his hands on any of it." She suggested.

"Or she didn't give him enough time to drug her." Morgan countered.

"Either way we will have to wait until she wakes up. El I think you should stay; she will be more comfortable speaking with a woman about what happened. It is possible she will have hard feelings towards a male." El agreed and Hotch returned to the station.

"Do you think it is possible that he will come back to find her?" El said suddenly. Morgan pondered over the thought.

"He had the habit of calling at the same time every night. He kept the girls for the exact same amount of time before getting rid of them. He never once changed his style of killing or MO." El continued. "What if once he had started something, he can't stop? It's compulsive to him, he can't help it."

"Then if that is true, he will come back for her. He will probably visit the hospital, but be discreet about it; visiting another patient. Then try and attack her when she goes home." He spoke softly so no one would over hear their conversation. "Did you tell anyone else of your theory?" He asked. El shook her head. "Call Reed," he said simply.

El dialed his number.


	8. Chapter 8

_Okay... So I know that this is WAYYY over due, but here it is. I had to look at my previous chapters like ten times just to keep everything straight. I hope you are still interested and I hope it is pleasurable. _

~Ray-Ray

* * *

"I-Imean it is a very probable assumption. Our un-sub does exhibit compulsive behavior. He has to drug his victims to overpower them, which implies he has a control complex as well. He is fighting for dominance; possibly to compensate for an absent father." Reid said over the phone.

"I don't think that his father was absent." Elle said hesitantly. "He was present in the home but he was not present in the un-sub's life. He may have been very submissive."

Hotch listened silently as Reed and Elle spoke.

"Or the father had the lower paying job, and the mother often complained about how she was keeping the family together."

"The father could have had no job at all." Ell said. "He may have been a drunk, and took his own anger out on his son. He called out his own securities on his son. He also would have spent the most time with his son."

"But then why would our un-sub rape these victims?"

"He feels most powerful during sexual interactions. He is sexually confident because he knows that he has control over his partners."

"You got a good look at the guy right Elle?" Hotch asked.

"Yeah," She responded. "Why?"

"If this theory is true, he wouldn't need to drug his victims if he could seduce them. You gave the artist the description of a tall medium built man. During the autopsy the coroner found traces of chlorophom on the victim."

"Then that became part of the compulsion." Elle said. "The fear of losing control over these women forced him to fall into the routine of drugging them." Elle turned to Hotch. "If he let one get away, he was rushing. He didn't have the time to follow her and get to know her schedule. He did this on the spot. Unfortunately for him he made a mistake."

"Thanks Reid." Hotch said. Elle closed the phone, and followed Hotch into the hospital.

The girl was stabilizing as the doctors planned. At the moment they wouldn't allow Hotch and Elle inside her room because she was asleep. They sat together outside the waiting room in silence.

"How have you been?" Hotch asked, breaking the silence.

"Oh, I've been okay." Elle shrugged.

"Really," He looked at her intently. Elle and Hotch hadn't been on good terms at the time that she had left. A part of her still resented Hotch for her last memories at the BAU.

'_They were your actions'. _She told herself. Nonetheless, she couldn't help but feel anger toward Hotch; he had treated her unfairly hadn't he? She shook her head subconsciously.

"I don't know." She said after a moment. "I think I am still in shock."

"Elle, you were never one to be shocked by anything." Hotch said. "You wanted to be put back onto the field only days after you had been released from the hospital." Elle sighed.

"I don't know what to think of _this _though. I am not a part of the BAU or even the FBI anymore. I'm not doing anything important. I haven't spoken at universities like Gideon or written a novel like Agent Rossi. I feel lost and I think my goal right now is to find myself."

"Well you can't forget about the places you came from Elle. The BAU will be a part of your past experiences that give you knowledge to continue. It became a part of you." Hotch said smoothly

"It's what tore my life apart." Elle said acidly.

"Then why did you come back? You certainly didn't have to call Penelope. You made that choice. Something is bringing you back."

Elle thought about that until a nurse came into the waiting room with the doctor.

"Agent Hotchner," The tall man said. "The patient is awake and stable enough to see you."

"Thank you, doctor." Hotchner said and he and Elle followed him into the woman's room.

"Don't push her too much for now. She is still in shock." The doctor said as he held open the door for them.

"Kendra," Elle began. "My name is Elle Greenaway, and this is Agent Hotchner. We wanted to ask you questions about what happened to you." She paused. The girl sat up a little straighter.

"But will only ask them if you are ready to answer." Hotchner added.

"I've already been asked questions about what happened." She sighed. "I don't know what else you people would have to ask me." She looked away.

Elle took the seat nearest to her bed and leaned forward.

"These questions are different. We aren't just part of the FBI; Agent Hotchner is from the BAU. Do you know what the BAU does?" The girl nodded. "We will start at the beginning."

"I know you were asked about how the man looked, but we wanted to ask you about his behavior. Was there anything odd about him?" Hotch started.

"I… I don't know." She said looking a little bit confused.

"Don't rush yourself take the time to think about it. Go back to where you were when it started."

"I was getting ready to leave for my last appointment with my therapist. I am moving out of state with my parents, you see. The elevator was out of service, so I took the stairs." She frowned. "A man was walking up as I was going down. He was looking at his feet the whole time until he heard me. He looked up and smiled. I thought he had very pretty eyes. They were green, a very vivid green. I was so focused on his eyes that I didn't pay attention to where I was walking. I tripped and he caught me. I thanked him. When I tried to walk away he gripped my arms tighter and pulled me to him. He put something over my mouth and then I blacked out… It must have been chloroform.

"After a while I came to and he was trying to tie me to a bed. It took all the strength I had but I kicked him then went to untie my other foot. I stumbled onto the floor; I tried to get up but he was practically on top of me by that time. He hit me hard, and I swear I could see stars. But I held on and I crawled over to the bedside table. As I reached up he thrust a knife into my side, thank god he missed my vitals.

"I screamed out, but no one came. He struck at me a few more times and I was feeling dizzier than ever. So I grabbed the lamp and threw it at him as hard as I could. Then I reached for something to pull me up. I ran to the door and didn't stop until I was in the lobby." The girl stopped flushing. "That is when I noticed that my clothes were off…" She began to cry.

"You did a good job." Elle said. "You got away. And we won't leave you alone." She patted the girl's hand.

"Kendra, you mentioned your therapist. What is his name?"

"Doctor Thurgood. Michael Thurgood." She said. "I wasn't actually supposed to see him, but I had an emergency appointment, due to all the anxiety from moving."

"Thank you." Hotch said. "Rest, an agent will be outside at all times for your safety."

They left the room and Elle's expression changed.

"What," Hotch asked noticing her change.

"Well, she mentioned that she hit him over the head. If she managed to hit him hard enough, he may have a concussion…" She stopped.

"I'll call Garcia." He turned and walked down the hall.

**Hotch**

"This is Garcia, the oracle with answers to all of your questions." Penelope said answering the call.

"Garcia, I would like you to check hospital records for today and tomorrow, I want to know if there are any patients with concussion cause by blunt objects. The un-sub may check into a hospital to have it looked at, especially if he needs stitches."

"Will do," she said before hanging up the phone.

Elle caught up with Hotch then.

"I feel like we are wrong about this profile." She said hesitantly.

"I was thinking the same thing." Hotch added. "We know that he most likely has OCD. However he probably does not have bipolar disorder or any sort of mood disorder. His rage is most likely cause from the hatred of his mother, and lack of control over women."

"That was my thought as well." Elle said.

"We are going to another crime scene." Hotch announced. "Rossi and I stumbled upon it when we were questioning suspects. The man we were after was found dead in his home."

"It wasn't just a robbery?" Elle asked.

"Everything was left in place. There was only sign of struggle in the living room. But they searched the basement and found a safe that was open. Investigators found traces of Cocaine inside."

"You think this is a drug war?" Elle asked. Hotch shrugged, his face unreadable.

"I don't know what to think, all I know is that we can't out rule anything."

"We better keep the first suspect in custody then, because he definitely was intoxicated. They worked in the same building; they may have the same dealer."

"Good thinking." Hotch called the local station.

The home of the latest victim was already taped off and deserted. Elle and Hotch entered through the front door. Everything was left where it had been in the beginning. A lamp was on the floor and pictures had been turned over. Though the body had been removed the blood still remained.

"The victim was found face down here. The shot was point blank. Our victim had fallen to the floor during the struggle, and his attacker stood over him and sent the bullet through the back of his skull."

"From there I assume the attacker went down to the vault and took his prize." Elle said. "He must have known the code, or found it written. It would take too much time to break into it."

"No one called the police though." Hotch countered. "He had all the time in the world. It was Rossi and I who found him hours after he had been dead. Besides nothing else was misplaced, if he had searched for the passcode he would have rummaged through almost everything in the house to find it. That sort of thing isn't something you let sit around in the open." Elle nodded.

"Okay, so our guy brings his tools with him and after he finishes business with Xavier Grey, he goes to the basement calmly and retrieves his package and leaves."

"It all seems thin to me." Elle responded while surveying the rooms. "I think there is something more than drugs, possibly money." Hotch only nodded.

"I suggest we meet back up with the team. We will have to split cases." Hotch said as they left the house.


End file.
